India Sold Nearly 7 Million Motorcycles In Just Six Months. The Numbers Get Even Crazier

America worries about motorcycle sales. Meanwhile, India apparently can't build enough parking spaces.

By: Enrico Punsalang

Oct 28, at 8:23am ET

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The motorcycle industry has had its fair share of challenges lately, from rising prices to changing consumer habits and manufacturers struggling to attract younger riders. But apparently, someone forgot to send India the memo.

The country just recorded nearly seven million motorcycle sales in six months, and the numbers are ridiculous enough to make just about any other motorcycle market look like a rounding error. More importantly, digging into the data reveals some fascinating changes in what Indian riders actually want.

According to a report by Autocar India, Indian manufacturers dispatched 6.92 million motorcycles between April and September 2026, representing a 10 percent increase over the 6.27 million recorded during the same period last year. For context, India's financial year begins in April, meaning these figures represent the first half of FY2027, rather than the first six months of the calendar year.

That's approximately 1.15 million motorcycles every month, or nearly 38,000 every single day. September was particularly bonkers, with 1.41 million motorcycles dispatched, setting a new monthly record. Every month during the six-month period exceeded one million units, compared to just three months during the previous fiscal year's first half. And despite those staggering numbers, India still hasn't beaten its all-time first-half record of 7.37 million motorcycles, set back in FY2019.

The broader two-wheeler market is even bigger.

Photo by: Royal Enfield

According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), total domestic two-wheeler dispatches reached 12.09 million units during the period. Motorcycles accounted for approximately 57 percent, while scooters contributed another 4.86 million units, or roughly 40 percent. Interestingly, motorcycles actually lost market share to scooters, despite posting double-digit growth. Apparently, there's enough demand for everyone to have a pretty good time.

Hero And Honda Are Playing An Entirely Different Game

Photo by: Hero MotoCorp

Photo by: Honda

Hero MotoCorp remains the undisputed heavyweight, dispatching approximately 2.94 million motorcycles, up 12 percent year over year. That's a staggering 43 percent of India's motorcycle market, and more than twice Honda's volume. Much of that success comes from affordable commuters, with Hero selling 2,583,467 motorcycles in the 100cc to 110cc category alone. That's roughly 88 percent of its entire motorcycle business, proving that basic transportation remains an enormous part of India's economy.

Honda wasn't exactly struggling either. It dispatched 1,389,056 motorcycles, also growing 12 percent, and maintained a 20 percent market share. Its biggest contribution came from the 110cc to 125cc category, where it sold 990,370 units. Meanwhile, its Unicorn 150 recorded 182,253 sales, up an astonishing 229 percent from 55,291 a year earlier. That's a pretty dramatic reminder that an unassuming commuter can be a much bigger commercial success than the latest exotic superbike.

The Premium Motorcycle Boom Is Getting Interesting

Photo by: Royal Enfield

Here's where things get particularly interesting for enthusiasts. Royal Enfield dispatched 642,021 motorcycles, growing 23 percent and increasing its market share to 9 percent. Of those, 596,539 belonged to the 250cc to 350cc category, an increase of 26 percent. The entire segment grew 41 percent to 703,329 units, suggesting that demand for larger, more expensive motorcycles is expanding considerably faster than the overall market.

Royal Enfield still controlled approximately 85 percent of that category, although that's down from 94 percent a year earlier. In other words, its dominance remains absurd, but competitors are starting to take meaningful bites out of the pie. TVS, for example, grew its 250cc to 350cc sales by 239 percent to 10,636 units, while Honda recorded 44,148 units, up 88 percent. Those growth percentages are impressive, even if their absolute volumes remain relatively modest.

TVS also had a strong first half overall, selling 774,391 motorcycles, up 13 percent. Its Apache family accounted for 334,347 units in the 150cc to 200cc category, growing 23 percent and capturing 42 percent of that segment. Yamaha, meanwhile, posted 34 percent overall growth to 227,408 motorcycles, including 149,283 in the 150cc to 200cc class, up 64 percent. Clearly, motorcycles offering a little more performance are finding plenty of willing buyers.

Not Everyone Is Celebrating

Photo by: Bajaj

Bajaj Auto was the notable exception among India's major manufacturers, recording a 7 percent decline to 932,981 motorcycles. Its market share dropped from 16 percent to 13 percent, with particularly painful losses in entry-level categories. Sales of its 100cc to 110cc motorcycles fell 26 percent, while its 110cc to 125cc models dropped 22 percent. That's a combined problem when affordable commuters traditionally generate such enormous volumes.

But even Bajaj's numbers tell a more complicated story. Its 150cc to 200cc sales increased 33 percent to 210,743 units, while the 200cc to 250cc category jumped 80 percent to 88,343 units. That gave Bajaj a commanding 56 percent share of the latter segment. So while the company's overall motorcycle business contracted, its larger-displacement offerings actually performed rather well.

What This Means For The Motorcycle Industry

Photo by: TVS Motor Company

There are two important caveats here. First, these numbers represent manufacturer dispatches to dealers, not necessarily motorcycles registered by individual buyers. Second, India's market remains overwhelmingly driven by practical transportation, so interpreting every increase in displacement as an enthusiast revolution would be getting ahead of ourselves.

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Still, the trajectory is difficult to ignore. India's motorcycle market is growing, buyers are increasingly considering larger machines, and manufacturers are fighting over categories that previously represented relatively small slices of the business. Changes to India's goods and services tax structure have also improved affordability for motorcycles below 350cc, giving these segments another potential boost.

If the current pace continues, FY2027 could surpass 14 million motorcycle sales, potentially beating the previous annual record of 13.59 million set in 2019. That's a projection, not a guarantee, but it illustrates the scale of what's happening. While much of the motorcycle industry debates how to get more people riding, India is demonstrating what happens when motorcycles are already woven into everyday life.